@LaGrange - Celebrating the season

Looking a lot like Christmas on the Hill

Festive wreaths have been hung and Christmas lights have been strung around campus, sure signs of the upcoming holiday.

The Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, considered by many to be the official kickoff to the season, will be at 7 p.m. Sunday in Callaway Auditorium, followed on Tuesday by Christmas on the Hill from 5-7 p.m. and a holiday concert by the band and percussion ensemble from 7-8:30 p.m.

Debbie Ogle, Assistant Professor of Music and Choral Director, said the annual Lessons and Carols is patterned after the original service at Kings College in Cambridge, England.

“This is the 100th anniversary of that first service,” she said. “It was begun as a response to the gratitude that World War I was over and for the armistice that ended it. It was an attempt to reconcile a world torn apart, when the world was in need of healing as never before.”

Lessons and Carols began at LaGrange College in 2001, and Ogle said it is the perfect way to celebrate the Advent season.

“I was always mesmerized by the singing of the choristers and the wonderful biblical texts chosen to tell the story of the birth of the promised Messiah,” she said. “The beauty and promise revealed in the combination of the two fills the heart with promise.”

Jack Hurd, 10, will sing the first verse of the processional, “Once in Royal David’s City.”

“I asked my friend Stacey Hardigree, who is the director of Young Singers of West Georgia, if she could recommend anyone, and she said she had the perfect singer. It turned out to be Jack.”

Poignantly, Jack is the grandson of late Biology Professor Dr. John Hurd, and the son of Johnny Hurd Ed.S.’11 and Racheale LaManna Hurd ’06. Jack’s grandmother is Margaret O’Gwynn Hurd Lawson M’89.

“We also will be welcoming Dr. John Beyers, the new senior pastor of LaGrange First United Methodist Church, who will read the final lesson,” she said. “He is quite the expert on the King’s College service, and he’s been an invaluable source of information for me.”

Ogle thinks the tradition of Lessons and Carols is reassuring in today’s world fraught with turmoil and discord.

“We are comforted by what has remained the same since God’s promise was fulfilled,” she said. “Maybe we need it now more than ever – something lovely to hold onto, even now.”

The service is free and open to the public.

The ever-popular Santa and his live reindeer are making a return appearance Tuesday at this year’s Christmas on the Hill.

The event also will feature holiday crafts, Santa Sumo, a holiday train around the Academic Quad, Letters to Santa and games. Funnel cakes, pizza and holiday nuts also will be for sale. Caroling and a tree lighting ceremony will be held at 6:30 p.m. Although not mandatory, a donation of $5 (cash only) or canned food products will be appreciated. The food will benefit Our Daily Bread soup kitchen, created and maintained by LC students.

Later Tuesday night, the college’s instrumental ensembles will present “Sounds of the Season” at 7 p.m. in Callaway Auditorium. The program will include Christmas selections from the wind ensemble, percussion ensemble and jazz band. Admission is free.

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Sports

Men’s basketballThe Panthers (4-1, 1-0 USA South) overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half to win 76-68 at Piedmont on Tuesday in a USA South game. Senior forward Jalen McCallum had a school NCAA era record nine blocks to go with 12 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. LC plays at USA South foe Covenant today (Friday).

Women’s basketballLC (4-2) went 1-1 at its own USA South/SAA Classic Tournament last weekend. The Panthers beat Berry on Saturday before losing to Oglethorpe on Sunday. LC plays at Berea on Friday and at Maryville on Saturday in USA South games.

SwimmingThe Panther swim teams will compete in the SCAD Invitational in Savannah, Georgia. The meet begins Thursday and runs through Saturday.

Campus notes

The fourth annual Sophomore Retreat will be March 1-2 at the Historic Banning Mills. Interested students should apply by Monday. Space is limited. For more information, contact Dr. Karen Pruett at the Center for Leadership and Career Development at kruett@lagrange.edu or 706-880-8997.

The Panther Toy Store will be held during Christmas on the Hill on Tuesday. Volunteers are needed to help set up, wrap presents, take down and work during the event. For more information or to sign up, contact Coral Douglas at cdougla2@student.lagrange.edu. This opportunity is considered service hours.

The box office is open now for LaGrange Theatre’s next production, “Blithe Spirit,” running Dec. 7-11 in the lab theater in Price. More information about the show will be in next week’s @lagrange. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for senior citizens (55 and older) and non-LC students and free for LC students faculty and staff. The box office is open weekdays from noon until 4 p.m. Email to make reservations at priceboxoffice@lagrange.edu, or call 706-880-8080. If emailing or calling, please leave name, the performance date/time and number of tickets desired, type of tickets and a call-back number and email address for confirmation.

John Mitchell Benton, a senior History major and Political Science minor, presented his paper, “The Impact for One Crucial Action/Terrorist Act to Hypothetically Shift Support to Those Who Advocate for More Security,” at the annual meeting of the Georgia Political Science Association in Savannah, Georgia, on Nov. 9.